As with other forms of clothing, the Sarong Kebaya was an expression of identity for Peranakans. This very informational and eye-opening Sarong Kebaya exhibition at the Peranakan Museum, traces the history of the distinctive Peranakan female dress from the 16th to 20th century.

Some of the beautiful Sarong Kebayas on exhibition on level 2. (This exhibition occupies levels 2 & 3 in the museum and I found it more helpful to start from level 3, so it’s just a little tip!)

The Malay term “Peranakan” means “locally born”, and refers to the different communities which developed uniquely in Southeast Asia. A huge portion of Singaporeans have Peranakan ancestry, and this culture is still very much alive today, which makes it a very colourful hybrid culture that makes up a huge part of Singapore.

Read more for wonderful batik prints, special trimmings, elaborate embroidery and lace among many others.

What I found interesting were these “typical” Indian textiles from the 16-17th century, made with batik and mordant dyeing. Batik makes use of wax to block out specific patterns and it’s more suited for indigo blue. Mordant dyeing uses this chemical solution with red dye from the madder plant, the fabric is then bleached, and the red parts just remain.

This is why most Indian textiles’ predominant colors are blue and red, and sometimes with tones of black and brown which are achieved by dyeing both red and blue over the same area.

This is a variation of the Baju Panjang and Sarong worn by Penang nonyas during the 12-day wedding ceremony, from the first half of the 20th century. It’s lined with Chinese rabbit fur, and it’s representative of the cultural mixes and external influences on the evolution of the Sarong Kebaya.

Many wealthy Chinese businessmen from Yangon and Phuket married these Penang Peranakan women and brought along fashion and cultural influences from their hometowns.

Here is a Batik Sarong which features the swastika, one of the most intriguing symbols in Asian art. Its has many meanings, such as symbolizing the holy teachings of Buddhism, as well as representing “10,000″, or infinity in the Chinese culture. Patterns interlaced with the swastika also appeared in Islamic art since the 13th century, and it’s part of the design repertoire in the Malay world (referred to as banji).

These are some of the more interactive installations of the Sarong Kebaya exhibition where you can get a tactile feel of thread, embroidery, lace, basically most materials used to make a Sarong Kebaya, as well as vintage sewing machines and the like.

Moving down to level 2 of the exhibition:

These Kebayas are more sheer and form fitting, as people get more exposed to trends and western fashion in the WWII period, as well as traders bringing in more varieties of fabric and material. Industrialisation also played a part in how clothes were made – by machines instead of by hand, which led to more mass-produced outfits with a wider variety of dyes and colours.

You can see how politics and certain happenings within a certain time period can influence fashion, such as how the WWII in the 1950s had provoked more rapid changes in fashion.

This is lace, used in Kebayas during the 1900s when women wanted to emulate the styles and fashion of Dutch and Eurasian women, and many kinds of lace were incorporated in Kebaya designs.

Outside the museum, there’s a lovely little monument of a cat who had “adopted” the museum (back then it was the Asian Civilisations Museum and then it was redeveloped in 2005 as the Peranakan Museum).

This was actually the first time I’ve been to the Peranakan Museum so I didn’t really know what to expect, but it was such a beautiful place with exhibits I could actually relate to because both sides of my family were largely Peranakan and I still see some of this culture in my grandmothers’ houses.

The great attention to detail as well as the great variety of Kebayas and historical relevance of this exhibition made it a very fascinating visit. You should really go to take a look at the beautiful details in textiles and unique designs – each Kebaya is charmingly intriguing.

Sarong Kebaya : Peranakan Fashion and its International Sources Exhibition
1 Apr 2011 – 26 Feb 2012

The Peranakan Museum is located at:
39 Armenian Street, Singapore 179941.

Opening Hours:
Monday: 1pm to 7pm
Tuesday to Sunday: 9am – 7pm (to 9 pm on Fridays)